Peasant politics of the twenty-first century : transnational social movements and agrarian change
Edelman, Marc. Cornell, 2024
- 378p bibl index, 9781501773440 $130.00, 9781501773945 $36.95, 9781501773457
- LC Call Number: HD 1251
Over the past half century, rural studies have undergone a paradigm shift from what was originally labeled "peasant studies" to the more contemporary "critical agrarian studies." This evolution in terminology was in response to a recognition of the complexity of the rural world as well as the intersection of its study with other academic fields. Edelman (anthropology, Hunter College; the Graduate Center, CUNY) has enjoyed a long and productive career studying the Latin American peasantry, and he is particularly well situated to review these developments. Despite an apparent decline of interest in the field, Edelman argues for its continuing relevance regardless of what it is called. The result is a work that compiles his essays from the past quarter century and presents an excellent summary of the current state of the field. In particular, this volume usefully charts the rise (and decline) of what Edelman terms "transnational agrarian movements (TAM)" (p. 4). Writing from the perspective of leadership structures and as a scholar-activist, Edelman effectively obliterates essentialist stereotypes of primitive peasants. Rather, readers meet effective leaders who confronted corporate-led globalization that undermined rural livelihoods.
Summing Up: Recommended. All readers.
- Reviewer: M. Becker, Truman State University
- Recommendation: Recommended
- Readership Level: All Readership Levels
- Interdisciplinary Subjects: Food and Agriculture , Latin American & Latina/o Studies
- Subject: Social & Behavioral Sciences - History, Geography & Area Studies
- Choice Issue: oct 2024 vol. 62 no. 2
- Choice Review #: 62-0453